Atlanta — Right-hander Yovani Gallardo's left ankle was still pretty sore Wednesday, putting in jeopardy his next start for the Milwaukee Brewers.

Gallardo left his outing Tuesday night against the Braves after turning his ankle trying to field a high chopper over the mound in the fourth inning. With no off days on the schedule, his next turn comes up Sunday in Miami, but Gallardo might not be ready to pitch by then.

If Gallardo is unable to make his next start but will be OK after that, it creates a pitching quandary. Tyler Thornburg, a former starter turned reliever, pitched 32/3 innings behind Gallardo on Tuesday and could take that next turn but then he wouldn't be available for several days in a bullpen already carrying a heavy workload.

"It doesn't sound like it would be longer than one start," said Roenicke. "We'll just have to figure who will do it if he can't do it.

"When you (start Thornburg) it realy disrupts your bullpen. I don't know if right now we can afford to disrupt that bullpen this much. If he throws 70-75 pitches, he can't pitch again for another four days. You'd have to bring somebody to cover."

The Brewers have several starters throwing the ball well at Class AAA Nashville, including Mike Fiers (6-1, 2.01) and Jimmy Nelson (5-1, 1.71), both of whom are on the 40-man roster. But a player would have to come off the Brewers' roster to open a spot for one start, and that player couldn't return for 10 days barring an injury to someone else.

"It doesn't take much (for things to change)," said Roenicke. "That's why we try to be so careful with those guys because one disrupted outing and it really makes it hard on everybody."

Gallardo is hoping for tremendous improvement in his ankle over the next couple of days.

"It's just sore," he said. "We'll see how it is after getting treatment on it a few times today, and then go today."

Normally, Gallardo would throw a bullpen session Thursday but that seemed unlikely.

"We'll take it day by day," he said. "We'll get treatment throughout the day and see how it is tomorrow.

"I'll do everything I can to go out there and take the ball. There's other little things you can do (to get ready). You've got plenty of time. You can throw off flat ground."

Gomez visits injured boy: Brewers centerfielder Carlos Gomez visited a young boy in the hospital Wednesday morning. The boy had been struck Tuesday night by a foul liner off the bat of Gomez.

Batting in the seventh inning of the 5-0 loss to the Braves, Gomez fouled off a pitch from Julio Teheran that carried on a line over the Atlanta dugout and into the stands, striking the young boy on the side of the face.

Teheran and Gomez were visibly upset about the boy getting struck, each crouching down in distress with hopes that he'd be OK.

"I get on my knees and was praying," said Gomez. "I wish to God that everything goes well for that kid."

Some of the Braves visited the unidentified 8-year-old boy after the game and brought him bats, jerseys, etc. Gomez said it was important to visit and see how he was doing.

"I'm a father," said Gomez. "It's a scary moment last night. I had the opportunity to go to the hospital and I feel better.

"You hate to see a little kid get hit. If you see a grown man get hit, you get upset, but you get mad, too. You come to a baseball game, you have to pay attention. It's not a club; it's not a party. It's a baseball game. It's professional ballplayers hitting the ball. The ball comes pretty hard. It can kill you.

"When it's a little kid, it hurt my chest. It was important for me to have the opportunity and see him, and stay with him for 30 minutes. He was really happy. At least mentally I feel good and I can perform today. I was upset."

When informed that Gomez visited the boy, Braves third baseman Chris Johnson said, "It's a pretty classy move. That's awesome. I think he felt pretty bad, too. You could see it on his face after. He kind of said a little prayer before he stepped back in the box, so it was a classy move by him."

Gomez has been booed by Atlanta fans since his altercation last September with former Braves catcher Brian McCann but said he saw positive responses after he tweeted about the visit.

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